VIDEO: Five Questions With … Misty Hardison

By Rasmus Jorgenson

For Misty Hardison, being a family lawyer means having a chance to help children and families get through one of the harder parts of their lives. The Raleigh attorney, who has spent the past seven years at Rosen Law Firm, always reminds her clients to put their children first.

Her calling to help children through divorce led her to write the children’s book “Jake’s Fridays.” The book, published last year and Hardison‘s second book for children, follows a boy whose happy family life is torn apart as his parents separate. For Jake, the best day of the week is suddenly replaced by “exchange day.” What doesn’t change, though, is that his parents’ love follows him everywhere. And they have some ideas for making the change easier.

Hardison’s first children’s book, “Why Did You Leave Us? We Loved You So,” tackles the loss of a loved one from a child’s perspective and was published in 2016.

Q: What inspired you to write Jake’s Fridays?

A: Children are always the innocent parties in divorce. Transitioning from one home to two homes is not easy, but it can be made easier if both parents do the work to make it easier and give children a sense of ownership in both of their new homes. “Jake’s Fridays” is aimed at giving children a sense of security with two homes and reminding them that both parents love them even though the family they knew has changed.

Q: How did writing the book influence how you communicate with your clients?

A: A huge concern in most divorces is finances. That can often consume the client and take the focus away from the children. Certainly, finances are important, but I remind clients not to forget that the children are hurting, too, and make sure you are taking the time for children and their needs. Truthfully, that is not always easy when you are worried about how you will feed the children or keep a roof over your head, but even in light of all the worries, it is important the client takes time with the children. The hardest part of the divorce is that you cannot control how the other spouse may act, and this can be quite frustrating for clients. My advice to the client is to take the high road no matter how your spouse is acting, and you will not regret it.

Q: What do you hope that children reading the book will take from it?

A: I have children of my own and grew up with many cousins, nieces and nephews, and I have always wanted to help children. I wrote the book because I want to do any small thing I can to help make divorce easier on a child. Children love both parents, and they should not have to choose, and my hope was the book would relay the message that both parents will always love you and it is also OK to be scared and confused by change. In the end it will not be the same as the family they once knew but they can still be happy.

Q: How did you come to practice family law?

A: I come from a family of dentists, and that would have been the natural path for me to take, but something always drew me to law. I saw it as a way to help people in need. There are a million reasons why spouses may divorce, but no matter what the reason, it is a difficult experience. The experience can be made better with a good lawyer. I always remind myself, how would I feel in this situation, and what can I do to help the client in these moments where their world seems to be falling apart? I want my client to feel heard and supported and that is my goal every day.

Q: Family law can be an emotionally taxing practice area. What are some of the rewarding moments that make it the place you want to be?

A: It makes it all worth it when I hear from clients that I made the process easier for them, and that in the worst time of their life, they felt supported. The divorce process is an emotional roller coaster because life as the parties knew it has changed forever. My goal is to help the client understand that it can and will get better, it will just take time. As the lawyer, you are their sounding board during the process, and I try to make sure I am as responsive and informative as I can be so I can do as much as I can to make a hard process easier.